Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Kwaku Ayensu Opare Addo, has asked cameramen belonging to the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party not to work in opposing camps without permission.
He issued the counsel while explaining on Metro TV news on Sunday evening, circumstances leading to the alleged assault early on Sunday, of a personal video cameraman of former President Jerry John Rawlings, NDC founder, by security men travelling with Nana Akufo-Addo, NPP Presidential candidate. Read story here.
The former President was lodging at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Kumasi, the Ashanti Regional capital where he was attending a celebration of Akwasidae, while Nana Akufo-Addo also arrived at the hotel in a convoy, to seek accommodation for a member of his team.
"The one thing that I want to be so explicit about is this; there are two contesting parties, the NDC and the NPP. These parties are going to make our democratic dispensation the excellent one in Africa today. So when you belong to one side of the, you know, divide, you don't go to take pictures of the presidential aspirant of one side of the divide without his consent. This was what actuated the sympathizers of Nana Akufo-Addo to seemingly attack the photographer of the ex-president." Opare Addo explained.
Below is the full transcription of DCOP Opare Addo's interview on Metro TV. He was first asked if the incident had been reported to him.
Opare Addo: I have the report, that, the report was very explicit; Nana Akufo-Addo's sympathizers were there, at the Golden Tulip Hotel and they realized that the movement of Nana Akufo-Addo was being monitored by an unknown cameraman who was later identified as the personal photographer of the ex-president. Some of them attacked him, took the camera from him and the case was reported to the police at the Buffalo Unit of the Ghana Police Service in Kumasi.
Metro TV: Ok, Sir, do you know what prompted this assault?
Opare Addo: The one thing that I want to be so explicit about is this; there are two contesting parties, the NDC and the NPP. These parties are going to make our democratic dispensation the excellent one in Africa today. So when you belong to one side of the, you know, the divide, you don't go to take pictures of the presidential aspirant of one side of the divide without his consent. This was what actuated the sympathizers of Nana Akufo-Addo to seemingly attack the photographer of the ex-president. So what I decided was that grant him bail unconditionally, we didn't want to create the situation where he would make capital out of this thing and say that police are supporting one party against the others. He wanted to go the hospital, and I instructed that he should be given Police Report Form to go to hospital. So we are still investigating the circumstances leading to this scuffle between the two major political parties.
Metro TV: Ok DCOP Opare Addo, did you make any arrests in connection with this incident?
Opare Addo: As I said earlier on, I was not at the scene, I never knew those who picked this guy and sent him to the Buffalo Unit of the Police Service in Kumasi, so when we get back to the office on Monday, I will check and see what the developments are."
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